Tuesday 9 November

We have Internet and the Webcam is live again!!!

It is with great relief that I write this bit of news. We've been tearing our hair out for days now, trying to get our ISP to fix their problem. Everything in Africa is slow, but this was really tiresome. Still, it's running now so we can't complain.

We had rain showers for most of the morning. After Teeny's antics on the balcony pillar and the railing last night, we were relieved to find him / her sitting with Indie and Jelani in the nest this morning. I had visions of having to go out in the rain to find a missing chick. Thankfully, this was not the case. "Good chicks!"

Allan and I do a number of talks about the owls at various places. This morning we spent a few hours with the members of the Cornelian Society in Bryanston. I must tell you what a treat it was to spend some time with the Cornelians at their 50th Annual General Meeting.

The Cornelian Society, and I quote, "seeks to provide a forum for lectures by experts that are not just interesting and entertaining but also intellectually stimulating and challenging - covering a wide range of topics."
I'm not sure exactly where we fit in the above definition - probably entertaining (because everyone loved the stories of when we've been hit on the head by the owls!). I found the whole morning utterly fascinating, and walked away intellectually stimulated by the members themselves. It's not often that one has the opportunity to sit next to a 90-year-young person that has lived in many countries around the world, and has rubbed shoulders with Barons, Countesses and the likes, and who says at the end how delighted they are to have listened to our talk and met us. Really, it was quite special.

6pm Central African Time: Jelani's the first to explore the balcony floor. Indie and Jelani are still huddled together in the pot plant nest. The chicks are still wet from the rain, which I think provided some welcome relief from the hot days we've been having.

Later on: There's just no stopping Indie! Our explorer took a solo flight across the driveways separating us from our neighbours, and landed on the top of the neighbour's roof. There Indie sat, wating for food - the King / Queen of the Castle. Both parents fed Indie on the roof, which was lovely to witness. A small thunderstorm came and went with Indie remaining on the rooftop, content enough to wait for the storm to pass over.

Jelani and Teeny had other plans - thankfully, the balcony was the chosen playground for the evening. Teeny was camera shy this evening, spending most of the time on the pillar behind the nest tree. Jelani moved frequently - from the pot to the railing to the pillar, down to the balcony floor, and back up again.

Pot Plant Owl and Pappa fed Teeny many tasty bits. Poor Jelani was left out a number of occasions until it eventually stood right next to Teeny in the hope of getting the next incoming meal. Rest assured though: the parents did feed Jelani eventually, so Jelani stopped hissing.